Crassus Crestheart

Story:

Crassus was born in a small town outside of the Kul’Tiras capital, Boralus, nearly 400 years ago. His father was a wealthy tailor and his mother was a servant in the house of a noble. Crassus’s early childhood was no different than anyone else’s. He played everyday with his mates, pretending to be pirates and marines. It was not until Crassus turned 6 that his childhood happiness took plunge. Being of an age where he could begin to think for himself, his parents had decided that his childhood games were over and ordered him to stay inside and start preparing for the well mannered life he was expected to have. His parents expected that Crassus and his three sisters to behave with dignified manners and decorum at all times. Day after day Crassus was forced to sit inside (with his back straight) and watch his friends play outside. He yearned for freedom, but anytime he would stray from his chores and decorum, his sister would always end up ratting him out to his parents, who would in turn beat his behind until it was red.

Crassus’s life of boredom went on until age ten. At such age his parents expected him to being working as an apprentice blacksmith under one of his father’s friends. Seeing as this was a chance to escape his sisters and boredom inside, he gladly accepted such a request from his parents. Crassus soon learned that the life of a blacksmith’s apprentice was just as boring. The work was annoying to say the least. Every time he would pick up one of the metal tools he would get shocked. Crassus would grumble and then go about the task he was required to accomplish. After spending the majority of his day at his apprenticeship, he would return home only to be lectured on his manners the previous day. Enough was enough for Crassus. He yearned for the outside, to be free and away from his nagging sisters and strict parents, and most of, that blacksmith’s shop. He planned an escape from it all. He would become one of the most famous Marines in all of Kul’Tiras history. Yes, the plan was perfect; he just needed to get away from home first. Crassus spent the next week gathering items he would need for his escape. His day for escape finally came at the end of the week. He had not expected a lighting storm to take place that day, but it was even better for his escape, it would wash away his tracks and the thunder would muffle his escape. Crassus tip toed through his family’s house with the aid of muffling thunder. He slowly opened the door and slipped outside. Once outside, he high tailed it out of his village. He ran so fast it seemed as if the wind was at his back.

Crassus ran until he reached Boralus. The great capital of Kul’Tiras. It was there he would became a Marine of legend. Crassus made it to Boralus in two hours, an unheard of run for even the fastest of runners on the island nation. He thought little of it and ventured into the city to find a place of rest. His first night did not go as well as he would have liked. He spent the night in an alley. He awoke to a kick to the stomach. Crassus groaned and left odd, as if he was moving. He looked up at a foul smelling, yellow toothed man. The man bellow, “Oi! Are new cabin boy be awake mates!” Crassus was utterly confused. He fell asleep in an alley and now it appeared as if he was on some sort of boat. He looked up at the man and inquired the usual for a person kidnapped, “Where am I? Who are you? Where are we going? Why are you doing this?” The man just looked at him and laughed. Once he was done laughing he sighed at Crassus and said, “You be on Salty Maiden, and yer goin’ be our new cabin boy, mate. Us pirates be needin’ a new one of yeah after the last one, err well, ya get the point.” Crassus stared at the man, “And im to believe that pirates were able to enter, much less get passed Marines?” The man looked at Crassus and laughed, “Boy its not that hard for us pirates to-“ Before he could finish a man dressed in fine silks walked in and cut him off, “I am sorry if Steve here scared you. He is new and doesn’t seem to understand the rules of piracy.” And with that the man pulled out his rapier and beheaded Steve. “Tsk Tsk. Well anyway, welcome aboard. Your first task as the new cabin boy is to clean up this mess Steve made.” Crassus stared at the man stunned. He had never expected nor wanted any of this. Well he supposed he did want to be free from all that order and a pirate was pretty much the embodiment of freedom. “Well don’t just stare at Steve, boy! Get to mopping!” And with that the man walked out and left Crassus with a mop and a dead body.”

Life as a cabin boy for a group of pirates was tough for a 10 year old boy. Crassus was required to do most of the bitch work on the ship and his most important job was to change the candles when they went out so that the crew members could keep the time. It was roughly when he turned 11 that Crassus’s powers started to manifest themselves. His first experience with the powers coursing through him was when he fell of one of the masts. Normally a fall from that height would severely hurt someone. As Crassus fell he called out to anything that would save his life. When he called out, the very air answered his request and created a cushion of air for him to land on. The crew was amazed to say the least and no one had an explanation for it. The captain, seeing this as an opportunity to profit, explained to the crew that he had magic abilities and he saved Crassus from death with these powers. The crew was amazed by their new magical captain; Crassus however, was not as impressed. The days following the incident were interesting for Crassus. His personality seemed to change over night. At points he was happy and minutes later he would be so angry he could kill someone. However, with this being said, the crew took a new liking to their cabin boy. His personality was magnetic. Along with these personality changes Crassus had physical changes, his eyes began to glow with a slight white light and his night vision drastically improved. Being 11, Crassus could not explain it and neither could the pirates he lived with. But I guess at this point Crassus was a pirate.

As the years continued on Crassus became like more and more by his fellow crew mates. With each passing years his abilities seemed to continue to manifest themselves. He could now successfully create cushions of wind and manipulate it in other ways as well. Crassus’s manipulation over lightening did not manifest until his 15th year when the crew was engaged in a battle against a merchant vessel. The ship was carrying goods from Booty Bay up to Kul’Tiras. The pirates engaged the ship and boarded as soon as they could. On board a bloody battle ensued. Crassus, still being a cabin boy and still not old enough to do any good was to stay back aboard the Salty Maiden and ‘protect’ it from enemies. He had done this hundreds of times before and he mostly just watched the battle taking place. Very few people tried to board the pirate vessel when under attack. This time was different though. About 30 minutes into the battle, Crassus heard footsteps on the deck. He was perturbed by the sound, surely no one would be back so soon, but the footsteps did not subside. Crassus, nervous and excited with the sound decided to investigate and ‘protect’ the Salty Maiden. He grabbed a kitchen knife from the galley and began to venture up on deck. However, before he could make it up the steps unto the deck, the door flew open and 4 pairs of eyes stared at him. The Goblins chuckled and drew weapons of their own. They rushed down the steps and tackled Crassus to the ground. Being Goblins, all four of them had to hold him down. They bickered amongst themselves what to do with the boy. The general consensus was to tie him to the mast and have him go down with the boat once they placed the explosives. (Because it will not be explained later, the merchant vessel had hired goblin sappers to infiltrate any enemy ships and place charges, blowing up the boat and preventing the pirates from escaping on it, once/if the guards overwhelmed the pirates.) Crassus was terrified for his life. With this fear also came searing hot anger. How dare they try to kill him and his new home?! These goblins would pay for their folly! And with that thought Crassus was filled with searing hot energy. The energy radiated from his hands and lightening jumped to the goblins holding him down. The shock was too much for the four goblin sappers and they fell to the ground. Crassus was confused by the incident. He had known he was not normal. He could manipulate the air around him to a degree, but never lightening. Crassus then looked at the goblins and was overfilled with joy. He had just taken down four enemies by himself! A simple cabin boy of 15! By the time everything was said and done, the pirates had returned to the Salty Maiden. They were successful in capturing the merchant vessel, albeit taking heavy causalities. When the crew stumbled upon Crassus and the dead goblins they cheered and patted the boy on the back. No one questioned that there where no stab marks and burns over the bodies, they just chucked them into the ocean. That day the crews liking for Crassus turned into respect.

The years following were normal for a pirate, high sea robbery, drinking, sex, and the likes. By this time Crassus was 23, his eyes glowed a light blue and his hair stood on end. He began to control and use his powers to a greater degree. He could manipulate wind and lightening at will. The crew of the Salty Maiden cheered their newfound brethren. It became strikingly obvious that the magical captain had no magic and that it was Crassus performing the amazing feats.. Feeling mutiny if Crassus was to stay aboard as a crew member, the captain ordered him to be fed to the sharks. Crassus was a threat to the captain, a threat that if left unchecked, could prove fatal. However, Crassus’s personality, while bipolar, was magnetic. There was not a single onboard that did not like Crassus. The captain’s orders were the last he would make. He was marooned on an island with a pistol and nothing else.

The winds began to change for Crassus as he advanced from a simple cabin boy to the first mate of the newly elected Captain Black Moustache. Under Captain Black Moustache and with the help of Crassus, the men of the Salty Maiden began to prosper like never before. Within five years they had a fleet of six ships. Captain Black Moustache dubbed the fleet, The Black Wind Pirates.

The Black Wind Pirates grew in infamy and were soon wanted by every major shipping company at the time. Battles ensued, casualties were frequent and revenue was continuously generated for the Black Wind Pirates.

On a routine trip to Booty Bay, the Black Wind Pirates were engaged by Kul’Tiras Marines. It appeared as though the Black Wind Pirates had grown too big for their britches. The Marines quickly overwhelmed every ship but the Salty Maiden. They were trained for fights like these and the ill-equip pirates stood no match against a fleet of Marines. Battle quickly engulfed the Salty Maiden. Crassus fell marine after marine with his lightening. The metal armor they wore just made it easier for him. Crassus was a force of unstoppable nature. He moved with the speed and power that lightening did, however, Crassus could do little against things that did not pass by his eyes. An arrow punctured through Captain Black Moustache’s chain mail and hit him square in the chest. Seeing his dying Captain was almost too much for Crassus. He grew with white hot anger. Anger he had not felt since he had killed the goblins. With a howl, a torrent of wind rushed down and engulfed a mass of Kul’Tiras marines fighting together near the stern of the boat, flinging them off the ship. Crassus still seared with white hot anger. Lightening struck the remaining marines, killing them instantly. With nearly every Marine on deck killed, the Salty Maiden sped off, away from the remaining Kul’Tiras ships. With the help of the wind, the Salty Maiden soon lost the Kul’Tiras ships and were able to finally regroup.

The Salty Maiden was all that remained of the Black Wind Pirates. Even with the recent death of Captain Black Moustache, Crassus was in a good mood. He did not let silly things like seeing a good portion of his friends die and the death of a dear friend, depress him. Being first mate, Crassus Crestheart assumed command of the Salty Maiden at age 29. He docked the ship in Booty Bay for repairs and set about sleeping with every whore he could find. He stayed in Booty Bay for nearly a month while the ship was being fixed. Crassus had a long list of things to do: Recruit more men, have lots of sex, get really drunk, gamble, get in bar fights, have even more sex, and if all these things got boring he would maybe set about finding why he was gifted with such power.

His list of things to do did not get boring at all. By the end of the month he had recruited more men, had sex with countless women, got shit faced nearly every night, losing his gold at cards, winning bar fights (although having his bones broken about half the time does not constitute winning). Crassus and his crew were sad to leave Booty Bay, but there was plunder to be made on the high seas, and most of the crew had lost their money.

Once again, Captain Crestheart and the crew of the Salty Maiden did what pirates do best, rob. The crew became perplexed as to why their captain looked exactly the same as when he was 23, but in the end they shrugged it off, he had unimaginable power coursing through him, and more importantly, he was on their side.

The life of a pirate was a life filled with freedom that Crassus had always dreamed about living. His unexpected gift made his life much more enjoyable albeit confusing. Each day on the open sea, Crassus pondered where his ability came from. His family had shown no signs of power like his. Oh yes, his family. He was sure his parents were most likely dead, but perhaps his sisters still lived. And perhaps one of his sisters may know about this. He shrugged the notion of visiting off for now, there was booty to plunder!

The Black Wind Pirates once again grew in infamy. With the magnetic personality of Captain Crestheart, more men joined they fleet and more ships where added. Rumors circulated that the Black Wind Pirates used some sort of wind magic to propel their ships faster then any other vessel. Wealth was made and the men were happy. Crassus however, was not. He had everything he had ever wanted and more, but the knowledge he wanted nearly 6 years ago did not subside. He was nearly 35 and he had yet to discover the source (sauce) of his powers. This gnawed at him every night. The need for knowledge was simple too much for him to handle. He finally caved in and set about planning for a landfall in the most pirate-killing-island in all of Azeroth.

The plan was quite simple really. The Salty Maiden would fly a Gilneas flag and enter Boralus, simply stating that they were Silk merchants, while the rest of the Black Wind fleet would stay docked down at Booty Bay. The plan ran smoothly. The Salty Maiden made it into Kul’Tiras and the crew went about feigning normal silk merchant acts. Not wanting to be recognized by any passersbys in Boralus, even late at night, Crassus called upon the powers he knew and loved. He called upon wind and he lifted himself up into the air and flew off near his old village. He landed outside the village and made sure he still had his hat on, to cover his notoriously spiky hair. He put it on nice and tight and tried to cover most of his face with the hat. He did not want his eyes to give him away either. He rented a room at the local inn and asked about for the Crestheart family, saying he was a cousin and he was here on a visit. The barkeep of the inn eyed him and said, “Crestheart family? Hmmm, well mate, Everyone is dead except the three daughters. You remember your cousin Crassus? Shame what happened to him, taken by Naga for god knows what.” Crassus stifled a laugh, “Oh yes. We did hear news of that, sad and very troubling. Now where are my three cousins?” The barkeep nodded and responded in kind, “Well two of ‘em, errr Matty and Jessica married off about ten years ago. They live in another village about a 4 hour walk from here.” Crassus frowned and looked down, “What about Katherine?” The barkeep responded with a laugh, “Well she is a little crazy now days. She just rambles about cake being a lie or something. I don’t know, but she lives in the old house.” Crassus smiled, “Thank you.” And he turned in for the night.

The next morning he went to visit his sister in his old house. Visiting the house of complete order and boredom was a bitter sweet experience. He knocked on the home’s door and waited politely for his sister Katherine to answer. The door opened and he was greeted by his sister who looked very angry. “Its fucking noon and you wake me up?! What for? Im not buying any of your goblin healing potions! The cake is a lie!” Crassus looked up at his sister, “Where are your manners Katherine? I thought they would be second nature by now, to a tattle tale like you.” Katherine looked at him oddly and stared at his glowing bluish-white eyes and blinked, “What is this? I don’t even? You look like a freak and im not buying your goblin healing potions.” She tried shutting the door, but Crassus placed his foot in it. “Katherine, im not selling any goblin healing potions, let me in now or im going to kill you.” Crassus fumed with anger and bawled his hands into fists. Katherine grumbled and opened the door. Crassus smiled and walked inside.

From that point it took a good two hours to convince Katherine who he was. She had no idea who the Black Wind Pirates were and she claimed that no one in all of Kul’Tiras had heard of them and he was always to full of himself. Crassus felt like hitting her, but decided against it. He showed her a brief display of his powers and asked if she knew anything about their origin. To his surprise she was a wealth of information. Apparently the trait is passed down to sons every few generations. Who gets it is completely random. Their father knew of the trait, but never possessed it. The trait was first introduced by their great great grandfather who took an unheard of trip to the continent up north. The information was passed down incase Crassus’s sister had children of their own. Crassus’s thirst was sated. He parted with his sister who at that time no longer knew who he was and kept telling him that the cake was a lie.

Crassus decided he would risk seeing if her statement amount him being a nobody was correct and strolled through Boralus without his hat on. To his surprise all he got where strange looks and chuckles, but no one at all stopped him. He supposed that maybe he was too full of himself. With his thirst for knowledge sated, he boarded the Salty Maiden and left Boralus.

Crassus watched as his crew members would wither and die while he remained the same. He supposed he was immortal in a sense. Crassus Crestheart gained new crew members for the Black Wind Pirates each year, for nearly 300 hundred years. Crassus tried his best to fly under the radar with his fleet. Never growing too much in power. He did not want a repeat of what happened years ago on that routine trip to Booty Bay. Crassus even helped when he could during the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd wars. Where there was profit to be made, Crassus and the Black Wind Pirates were there.

However, after the 3rd war, Crassus grew tired of his life of piracy. It was no doubt a fun filled life, but he felt too old for it. His powers were remarkably strong and he was almost so bipolar, he was crazy. He docked the Salty Maiden in Booty Bay and set out for a quiet life of rest.